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Dear Nursing Home Administrator Letter: Required New York State Long-Term Care Resident and Employee Immunization Act Report Due

March 2012

Dear Nursing Home Administrator:

The purpose of this letter is to inform you that the New York State Long-term Care Resident and Employee Immunization Act (Public Health Law, Article 21-A) requires long-term care facilities, adult homes, enriched housing facilities, and adult day health care programs in New York State to request that all residents and employees be immunized against the influenza virus, and, as appropriate, pneumococcal disease. Per the Act, these facilities are required to document their immunization efforts and to submit annual reports to the New York State Department of Health (NYSDOH). This year's annual report, which covers the period April 1, 2011 to March 31, 2012, is due to the NYSDOH by May 1, 2012. Background information regarding the law and the annual report is available on the NYSDOH Infection Control website at: http://www.health.state.ny.us/nysdoh/infection/ltc_act/.

New York State nursing homes are required to submit their annual reports electronically on the Nursing Home Surveillance and Reporting System on the Health Commerce System (HCS) by May 1, 2012. The report may be accessed on the HCS at: https://commerce.health.state.ny.us/. Please note that nursing homes and adult day health care programs are considered separate facilities for reporting purposes. Both programs must submit separate reports; they may not be combined into a single report.

On April 3, 2012, NYSDOH will conduct a live webinar entitled "Long Term Care Facility Influenza and Pneumococcal Reporting" from 12:00 PM to 1:00 PM. The purpose of this webinar is to educate those persons completing the Seasonal Influenza/Pneumococcal Immunization Data Report for Long Term Care Facilities on the steps necessary to complete the report online and to address frequently asked questions. Participants may register for the live webinar at https://nysdoh.webex.com/. The webinar will be recorded and posted online shortly after the live webinar at http://www.health.ny.gov/prevention/immunization/providers/webinar_series.htm. Please ensure that the person completing the report at your facility either attends the live webinar or views it online.

Please note that beginning in 2012 for the 2011-2012 influenza season, each nursing home's annual employee influenza vaccination rate will be posted on the New York State Nursing Home Profile at http://nursinghomes.nyhealth.gov/.

Enclosed, as Attachment 1, are instructions for submitting the report electronically. Attachment 2 provides instructions for assigning an individual from your facility to a data reporting role in the HCS Communications Directory, allowing that person to submit the report electronically. Please ensure that the person completing the report reads the revised instructions (see Attachments 1 and 2).

cc: NYSDOH Division of Quality and Surveillance for Nursing Homes and Intermediate Care Facilities for the Mentally Retarded

Attachment 1

Topic

Seasonal Influenza/Pneumococcal Immunization Report

Description

This guide gives detailed instructions for completing the Seasonal Influenza/Pneumococcal Immunization Report using the Nursing Home Surveillance and Reporting System. Only the individual that has been designated as the data reporting role can complete this report. Instructions for completing the data reporting section of the report are located at: http://www.health.ny.gov/forms/instructions/influenza_pneumococcal_ltc_instructions.htm.

Step 6:If your facility has both nursing home and adult day health care programs, then you will need to submit two separate reports, one for each program type. Be sure to choose the appropriate program type in the "Reporting Org" drop-down list. For the nursing home report, select the name of your facility with the letters (pfi). For the adult day health care program report, select the name of your facility with the letters (adhcp). These reports must both be completed separately and cannot be combined into a single report. If you do not see an option with the name of your facility with the letters (pfi), then you may not have an individual from your facility assigned to an HCS data reporting role for your nursing home. Follow the directions in Attachment 2 to get HCS role assignment.

Step 13: A confirmation of a status change with date, time and user will appear.

Attachment 2

Topic

HCS Role assignment for the Seasonal Influenza/Pneumococcal Immunization Report

Description

This guide gives detailed instructions for assigning an individual from your facility to a data reporting role, allowing them to complete the Seasonal Influenza/Pneumococcal Immunization Report using the Nursing Home Surveillance and Reporting System. Each facility type (nursing home and adult day care health program) will each need a person for the data reporting role. Facilities with both an adult day health care program and a nursing home will need both adhcp role assignment(for adult day care health programs) and pfi role assignment (for nursing home).

Step 3:Choose "Coordinators Update Tool" from the"My Applications" list on the left side.

Step 4: Select your organization from the list of organizations on the left and click the "Select" button.

Step 5: From the group of buttons on the top of the form click on "Manage Role Assignments."

Step 6:The "Role Assignments" page should now be displayed on your screen. To view the definition for a role, click on the role name. To edit role information you should:

Click the "Modify" button to the right of the role name

The following roles are the only roles able to view and complete the report:

HPN Coordinator

Infection Control Practitioner

Nursing Home Data Reporter

Step 7: To assign a user to a role, go down to section #2 and select a name from the drop-down list and click "Submit." This list contains individuals already entered in the Communications Directory and associated with your organization. If the individual you want to assign to the role does not appear in the drop-down box, go to section #4, and enter their last name (or the first few letters of their last name) and click "Submit." You are then presented with a list of search results for the last name. Select the name from the drop-down list and click "Submit."

Step 8:You will be presented with a notification screen stating that "You have updated the following roles."

Step 9: If the individual you want to assign to be the role does not appear in the list or if the letters "NA" appear next to their name, then he/she has not been issued an HCS account. That individual should contact CAMU at 1 –866 –529 –1890 and ask for information on how to open an HCS account.